A Design/Analysis Method of Gasketed Bolted Joints for Noise/Vibration Control

A large portion of the noise transmitted from an engine is a result of structural born vibration which may be radiated through the various pans and covers of the engine if they are not isolated from the engine through the gasketed bolted joints. This paper presents an analytical approach for the design of gasketed bolted joints when vibration isolation is required. A simulation of the scaling and isolation performance was created to include the effects of design, temperature, material properties, and loading conditions on the functionality of the noise isolation/sealing system. A systematic design process is developed and applied to the development of an oil pan gasket/noise isolation system. The predicted gasket isolation and scaling performance correlate well with measurements acquired from actual engine tests and suggests that the analytical design approach assists in improving the effectiveness of the design process by reducing the number of design iterations necessary to establish acceptable performance. Thus, the product development cycle time and product development costs are reduced by producing a finished product with controlled, predictable performance.